The United States Postal Service is mailing postcards that encourage voters to make a plan on how they will vote by mail if they plan to use that method to cast ballots.
“If you plan to vote by mail, plan ahead,” the 5.5-by-8.5-inch postcard says on one side, noting that the information is for “U.S. citizens.”
On the reverse is a checklist for voters on how to prepare to vote by mail, which encourages voters to “start today” and give “ample time to complete the process,” to verify the rules in each state, to request a ballot at least 15 days before Election Day, to follow the instructions thoroughly and to return the ballot at least seven days before Election Day.
[Read: The facts about voting early, by mail or absentee]
The mailer is part of a USPS campaign “to educate the public on the Postal Service’s role in the mail-in ballot process” that started in August.
“The nonpartisan campaign neither encourages nor discourages mail-in voting; rather, it is designed to reach and inform all voters about the importance of planning ahead if they plan to vote by mail,” a USPS spokesperson said in a statement to the Washington Examiner. “The campaign includes print, TV and radio ads, direct mail to residential customers, retail signage in Post Office lobbies, social media, and online resources, including the recently launched Election Mail website on usps.com.”
Figures on how many Postal Service customers will receive the mailing and the cost of the mailing were not immediately available.
Unlike the Trump campaign, which has worked hard to define a difference between the terms “mail-in voting” and “absentee” voting, the mailer does not make a distinction. “Request your mail-in ballot (often called “absentee” ballot) at least 15 days before Election Day,” it reads.
While the mailing does not induce any partisan messages, it echoes a number of liberal organizations funded by Democrats that push similar messages in the hopes of increasing voter turnout, which tends to benefit Democrats in elections.
Thought President Trump finds limited absentee voting acceptable, his opposition to automatic, universal mail-in voting for fear of voter fraud has aided in creating a partisan divide in the number of absentee and mail-in ballots requested, with far more Democrats requesting ballots than Republicans.
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy came under fire from Congress last month after accusations swirled that Trump was trying to undermine mail-in voting. DeJoy told Congress that he is “very, very confident” in on-time ballot delivery.
More voters than ever will be eligible to cast ballots by mail this year because states expanded the practice due to the coronavirus pandemic, hoping to prevent the spread of the virus at polling sites and among poll workers who are often elderly and are more at risk of dying from the virus.
The expansion of mail-in voting presents logistical challenges for election administrators who will deal with masses of absentee ballots for the first time. Experts warn that the surge of mail-in voting could mean election winners will not be known for days or weeks.
